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Interesting Facts
- At 190.8 meters (626 feet), the Calgary Tower is one of the taller buildings in town, and needless to say, the view from the top is impressive. High-speed elevators will get you there in 62 seconds. Of course, if you need a little exercise, there are also two 802-step staircases. They're usually just used for emergencies, except for one special day in April. Hundreds of people join the annual "Stairclimb for Wilderness" fundraiser, which benefits the Alberta Wilderness Association, the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, and the World Wildlife Fund. Most folks make the climb in about 20-30 minutes, although there are some healthy souls who run up in considerably less time.
- Lights, camera, Action! Canadian locations are quite popular with TV and movie producers, and Calgary is no exception. Some of the familiar movies filmed in and around the city include Dances With Wolves, Legends of the Fall, Last of the Dogmen, Unforgiven, Dead Bang and Superman IV.
- Many places in North America were named for places in the United Kingdom – Greenwich, CT; Norfolk, VA; York, PA; St. Andrew's, NB; New Glasgow, NS; Marlborough, MA; Birmingham, AL; and Sudbury, ON, to name just a few. Calgary was named in 1876 by NW Mounted Police Colonel James Macleod, who was originally from Calgary Bay, on the Isle of Mull off the west coast of Scotland.
- The first escalator in Calgary was constructed inside the Eaton's department store on 8th Avenue, in 1929. It's gone now, but at the time, folks would visit the store just to see the escalators.
- Bottoms up! The Caesar cocktail was created in 1969, by a Calgary bartender Walter Chell. Similar to a Bloody Mary, the concoction features Clamato juice, vodka, lime juice, dashes of Worcestershire and Tabasco, and a celery stalk. Today, the Caesar continues to be Canada's #1 selling cocktail. In fact, more than 250 million Caesars are sold each and every year.
- Calgary's signature event is the Stampede, a celebration of western heritage and cowboy culture first created in 1912. Each year, over a million people take part in the revelry, enjoying carnival rides, rodeo events, concerts, Native American dance performances, and free pancake breakfasts. It's a time when the whole city loosens up a bit, extends an extra bit of hospitality, and takes pride in the people who have brought (and continue to bring) Calgary to where it is today.
- Recreating Western Canada pre-1914, Heritage Park offers up a vision of prairie frontier life that can't be duplicated. More than 150 period-style buildings and a plethora of authentic furnishings, tools and memorabilia, are completed by an antique midway, an old fashioned bakery, an ice cream parlor, candy store and a gift shop. Get there early – a pancake breakfast is included with the price of admission between 9am-10am.
- Calgary's Millennium Skatepark is the largest outdoor public skatepark in the world, and not only that, it's open 24 hours a day and admission is free! In addition to a banked bowl, a jump box and roll-on rails, you'll also find a funbox, wall rides, a quarter pipe and a full pipe. Skater's heaven!
- Downtown Calgary is almost entirely connected via enclosed skywalks and tunnels, making it possible to get around without ever having to set foot in the snow. The first bridge connected the Westin hotel and Calgary Place across the street, and the idea took off from there. Called Plus 15 because most subsequent walkways were constructed about 15 feet off the ground, the system has grown to include 57 bridges, spanning some 16 kilometers (10 miles).
- Calgary hosted the 1988 Winter Olympics, which were expanded to 16 days and 46 events. Highlights included Katarina Witt skating to a second consecutive Olympic gold medal, Yvonne van Gennip's post-hospitalization win of three speed skating events, and Matti Nykänen's spectacular ski jumping. This was the first Winter Olympics for Canada, and the specially constructed state-of-the-art facilities now function as a popular attraction and training center. Perhaps the most thrilling experience in Calgary is here – a bobsled ride on the actual track used by the Olympic competitors. In the winter, it's like being on a snowy, icy roller coaster; in the summer, the sleds are on wheels, so there's no excuse to miss out!
